New online recruitment site to help schools avoid high fees

The DfE has launched an online recruitment tool which will help schools to avoid high supply agency fees.

The site will clearly show the fees recruitment agencies charge on top of staff wages, so school leaders know what they are getting for their money. It will also help schools avoid agencies that charge fees for making temporary staff permanent.

In 2016/17, the last year for which figures are available, schools in England spent £825 million with supply agencies.

To appear on the list of approved agencies, the suppliers must set out their costs up-front – allowing schools to compare prices – and conduct rigorous background checks on their staff.

Education Secretary Damian Hinds said: "There will always be a role for supply teachers within schools, but schools shouldn’t be ripped off when trying to recruit them. This new online tool will bring much-needed transparency to the fees that agencies charge to enable school leaders to see what they are getting for their money."

Lord Agnew, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the School System, is writing to all schools in England to let them know about the online tool, which has been developed with Crown Commercial Service.